Goodbye NZ, Hello Devon!

Our flight home was reasonably comfortable and Richard’s eldest son, Ben, met us at Heathrow. He took us back to Swindon from where Julie’s parents collected us that afternoon to take us back to Bristol where we are staying with them until we can move in to our new rented home in Modbury in Devon in the third of fourth week of June.

Thus our NZ adventure ends and our new Devonian exploration begins! And that’s a whole new blog!

Go well. Be happy. Have fun.

Thanks for reading!

Return to Matapouri, Ngunguru & Auckland!

For one night only, we stopped to camp at Julie’s favourite beach, now Matapouri –just beating Uretiti! – and enjoyed our final swim! We met Solonge, a friend of Ben and Zoe’s from Mamakea, in a very amusing beach encounter and then called in to see Ben, Zoe and the now bigger puppies once more, before meeting Genevieve for a ‘Goodbye’ lunch at Cafe BOB in Whangarei. We returned the much appreciated blanket that Genevieve had lent us to keep us warm at night since night-time temperatures had become noticeably cooler, and her copy of one of the best books Richard says he’s ever read about relationships, ‘Passionate Marriage’ by Dr David Schnarch. This is all about how to maintain a strong sense of self (NO – in 7 Words terms) in relationship (THANKS – in 7 Words) without getting ‘lost’, consumed or becoming co-dependent. ‘Differentiation’ (NO) is the key and Richard thoroughly recommends this book for everyone who wants to enjoy real intimacy.

We enjoyed our time with Genevieve until, of course, we had to say Goodbye, again! Like many of our new friendships, we’re certain this one will remain very special for many years to come. Thanks for everything, Genevieve. It’s been great to get to know you, to sing with you, to laugh, share and cry with you! We’ll see you again soon, on Skype!

And so we arrived at Graham and Megan’s in Green Bay, Auckland, for our final week. Another delightful family who have a very special place in our hearts. We first met Graham back in November, our first month in NZ, at Aio Wira. Then we met the whole family at the Prana Festival in the Coromandel over New Year – remember the beach umbrella they bought us! Then during the week after our fast at Aio Wira in March, we went to visit them for an afternoon and evening which is when they invited us to stay at their bach and to come back and see them again. Having met Megan’s parents at the bach, we were now also able to meet Graham’s parents, Mike and Janet, who were visiting from Cumbria, England for six weeks. We received a wonderfully warm welcome from them all, including an electric heater to replace Genevieve’s blanket!

It was wonderful to spend so much time with them all, in their beautiful home, with wonderful views overlooking Manakau Harbour (left), enjoying many crosswords with Mike and Janet, and several games of ‘Zotto’ with everyone – a word game that Ruby and James, the children (right), particularly enjoyed.


Graham and Megan treated us (YET AGAIN!) to a wonderful Goodbye meal out at the Lai Thai Restaurant in New Lynn. Graham organized a very special and much appreciated ‘coffee and cakes’ morning for the ‘girls’ on Mothers’ Day (10th May in NZ) whilst the ‘boys’ gathered elsewhere, at Lindy and Marti’s house, to give the girls time to do on their own what only girls can do! The boys read the Sunday papers and made toasted sandwiches – thanks Marti.

That night, Megan’s choir, or rather the choir that it is fortunate enough to have Megan sing in it, gave a performance in Auckland in a concert hall that reminded us of St. George’s in Bristol! It was a huge success and a delightful way to end Mothers’ Day.

The next day – our penultimate day in NZ – we had to return our mobile home to Kerry at Leisure Vehicles in Albany, just north of Auckland, and Graham very kindly came up after work to collect us. That night Mike and Janet cooked a special curry for us all and Graham said an old and very powerful Maori prayer to bless the meal, our time together and our journey home – thanks Graham, extremely moving! And after one final game of Zotto, Megan drove us to the Jet Park Hotel, near Auckland airport, where we chose to spend our final night.

Bach to the future!

North to Te Uenga Bay and Megan’s family bach (left) that Megan had extremely kindly offered us the opportunity to stay in for one of our final weeks. What a treasure! Megan – and the bach!


We spent a blissful week here, relaxing, basking in the glorious surroundings, and gorging ourselves on the stunning views (below & right). We walked. We swam. We slept. We ate in. We ate out. We read. We watched ‘Harry Potter’ and ‘Star Wars’ movies.

And we celebrated four years of being together (below)!

A week later we met Megan’s parents, Paul and Barbara, as they arrived for a short stay at the bach and ... “Moved on again we did!”

Ben, Zoe, Winnie, Dylan, Grace – and Jessie+3 !

When we arrived, Ben and Zoe were out with Jessie, their dog, at the vet, as Jessie needed assistance delivering her three gorgeous puppies!


Winnie, Dylan and Grace, Ben and Zoe’s three children, took good care of us until Ben and Zoe returned with their extended family and fish and chips for supper – great excitement all round!

By a strange coincidence (if indeed coincidences are ever strange?), that evening the children and ourselves watched ‘Grayfriars Bobby’, a delightful old film about a delightfully loyal little dog – not unlike Jessie! And Winnie gave us an amazing display of fire poys – the best we’ve ever seen!

Like us, Ben, Zoe and their children all love watching films and we enjoyed swapping tales of our favourite movies and film stars. A fantastic Spiritual Cinema Circle film they showed us was ‘Play and Fight’ – a documentary about the Venezuelan Youth Orchestra and how teaching youngsters music has become a hugely successful national phenomenon across Venezuela now spanning several generations. Do watch it if you get the chance. It’s inspirational and very uplifting, especially if you love music as we do. In exchange, we showed them Ben Zander’s ‘Shining Eyes’ TED talk on YouTube – a great way to spend 20 minutes!

Ben runs a very successful landscape gardening and horticulture business, ‘Blue Nikau’ – check it out at http://www.bluenikau.co.nz/ – and one afternoon we spent a delightful time walking around their nursery with Zoe and the children admiring a wonderful array of beautiful and exotic plants, including the first pineapple plant we’ve ever seen. We also enjoyed our lakeside parking spot on their 10 acres, fresh food from the garden, and feeding the chooks!

Another thing we love and admire about Ben and Zoe is that they lived for many years at the Mamakea Community – that we visited with Genevieve – and Winnie and Dylan were born there we think (hope we’ve got that right!).

Having both completed a 7 Words Q21 questionnaire, Ben and Zoe signed Richard’s vision statement about creating ‘7 Words Theatre’ and Zoe even got Gracie and one of her young friends cutting out and painting giant “NO”s one morning! Richard is excited about creating and developing 7 Words Theatre and keeping all our new friends in NZ up to date with its progress. He’s enormously grateful for all the support and encouragement he’s receiving from everyone he’s talking to about it. If you want to know more, get in touch. He’d love to tell you all about it too!

Dylan is a wonderful juggler and he taught Richard how to juggle four balls – the first time Richard has managed four! He could already juggle three but had never conquered four until Dylan showed him how. Winnie is a fantastic hula-hooper too. For some reason Richard didn’t fancy mastering that particular art! Julie had a go though. Winnie and Dylan have both been involved in a fantastic venture called ‘Stage Challenge’ in which schools create their own up to 8-minute music and dance productions on themes of their choice. Having watched videos of some of the competing entries, we were also privileged to watch the production in which Winnie and Dylan were involved which won! Great fun and very inspirational. What talented young people! If you listen carefully you can probably hear Richard’s brain ticking over even now with how he can do similar things with 7 Words Theatre!

As Yoda would say about moving on, “Difficult, it is!” Yet done it must be! And done it was, on Saturday 25th April. But only after discovering more mutual friends – Bruce & Rebecca, and Rachel, from Unicorn camps – all of whom have visited Ben and Zoe in NZ. Small world!

The beginning of our last month!

With 22 weeks in the bag, we had 4 weeks left in New Zealand. Having visited a doctor in Ngunguru and had confirmation that Richard does indeed have a small inguinal hernia – sustained whilst lifting heavy rocks out of a river a month ago at Aio Wira – these were going to be ‘light duties’ WWOOFing weeks for him! It’s not painful, more of a nuisance. No more heavy lifting until it can be surgically corrected back in the UK. He did manage to clean out the goldfish pond for Genevieve though before we left the dome on 19th April. The journey back out of the bush from Genevieve’s in the van was just as ‘hairy’ as the journey in, but we made it in the end - see the gate (oppositie) at the bottom of Genevieve's 4k drive!

From there we drove a short distance, only about 5k, to Ben and Zoe’s in Ngunguru where we stayed for the next week.

Home(opathy) in the Wood!

Thursday 2^nd April, Day 139 of our trip, 20 weeks in, and we’re back in Northlands, our favourite part of NZ. Stopping briefly for a fruit juice at Cafe Eutopia in Kaiwaka, and lunch at Uretiti Beach, we arrived at the bottom of Genevieve’s 4.8 km drive at about 3pm. The decision was made to attempt the climb in the van – and we made it, JUST! Couple of hairy moments, similar to getting in to Prana and climbing the mountain to Anahata, but we eventually emerged in to a clearing wherein stood Genevieve’s dome. Actually she rents it from a friend, Nick, but she’s been living here for about a year now – wild! LITERALLY!

Although isolated, we were able to borrow Genevieve’s car occasionally, when she was working from home, and get out and about a bit. We went to a lovely evening of singing at Ngunguru Memorial Hall, led by Zoe whom we met at Voice Camp in January. Explored Whangarei reasonably extensively, including the library, all the second-hand book stores (from where various items were acquired!), various galleries, cafes and restaurants, and of course Genevieve’s Clinic. She is an excellent homeopath, and taught us much about her profession during our stay. From knowing nothing about homeopathy I now feel like I at least know the basics – thanks Genevieve! Absolutely fascinating. As with many professions, there are many ways to approach and practice homeopathy – we particularly liked the way Genevieve works and will recommend homeopathy to others as and when it feels right.

Despite having very limited electricity in the bush and being almost totally reliant on solar power, we were able to watch several DVDs, including ‘The Majestic’ with Jim Carrey and ‘The Lake House’ with Sandra Bullock and Keano Reeves – both excellent.

Met Genevieve’s friend and teaching colleague, Julia, at their house in Mamakea Community nearby. Julia’s husband, Chris, has created a new charity called ‘Oceanwatch’ – see www.oceanwatch.org – which he is in the process of promoting and growing. Its main purpose being marine conservation.

Visited several of the local beaches, including Matapouri Beach (left) and Whale Bay – delightful! – and only 5 minutes away, once you reach the bottom of the drive! Weather has been glorious, especially considering it’s now Autumn! Had various visitors, including Genevieve’s 14 year old daughter Rachel, and her 19 year old son, Max. Also enjoyed several delightful days alone at the dome – our very own bush retreat – when Genevieve went out to work.

That brings us back up to date, finally! Loads I haven’t said. Loads more photo’s to show those who are willing to endure them! Read loads. Learnt loads. Shared loads. All good fun! And now less than one month to go!

Hope all is well with you. Much love. Richard and Julie xxx

Feasting to Fasting!

We left Dagma & Steve’s in Rotorua on 19^th March, with the possibility of meeting again next year in Germany where they are planning to live for a year from about October this year. It will seem strange visiting them in Germany and a lot easier I imagine.

And so we arrived back at Aio Wira to spend five days not eating! It was great to be back, to see Di and Lalage again. It was also good to know that we were there entirely for our own well-being, to work on ourselves, rather than on any WWOOFing jobs Di might have. The fast was a juice and vegetable broth fast. So we were still getting all the nutrients we needed whilst not eating any solid food. I thoroughly enjoyed it and was surprised not to feel hungry at all. Julie had a different experience and found things a little tougher. We were both glad to have done it though and our twelve fellow-fasters were all very supportive and friendly. Did a lot of meditation, yoga and walking. Did my first ever Tai Chi with a wonderful teacher, Ben, from China. Enjoyed several massages, facials, and frequent hot tubs and saunas, all of which help to eliminate toxins. Had an amazingly energetic dance late one night too, going wild to music from Afrocelts and The Who! There was another elimination process we experienced too, which was extremely effective! One of these even involved coffee! We’ll leave you to guess what that might have been!

Our ‘break-fast’ meal on Day 5 was an absolutely delicious baked apple with a prune inside! Thereafter, we took five more days to very gradually return to normal eating. We decided to stay on at Aio Wira to do this, enjoying its beautiful bush setting, mountain stream swimming hole, quail families, sunshine, stillness, spa, sauna, and other facilities, including Friday night at Bethells Beach – a popular gathering place nearby where many of the locals meet to exchange news and enjoy each other’s company. The night we went, a large screen had been erected outside to show a film documenting the history and lives of some of the local families. A fabulous array of refreshments was also available from a mobile cafe that is there every Friday night along with a variety of live music entertainers. The atmosphere was very relaxed and friendly and we could feel a very real sense of community – wonderful! A little different to the atmosphere surrounding an early morning meditation and swim we had at the same beach a few days earlier.

Before we left Aio Wira we visited Graham and Megan in Auckland whom we’d met at the Prana Festival in January (and Graham at Aio Wira back in November). They have a beautiful house overlooking the sea and yet again made us incredibly welcome. We spent a lovely afternoon and evening with them in the company of some of their friends, sharing a wonderful meal. And, as if that weren’t enough, they even offered us the opportunity to spend some time at their family bach at a place called Parekura Bay in the Bay of Islands – how kind and generous is that! They really are a wonderful couple and they have two lovely children too. More about our stay at their bach later!

Something else we did before leaving Aio Wira is watch ‘March of The Penguins’, narrated by Morgan Freeman, an amazing documentary about the life of emperor penguins – and we sometimes think our life is hard! Do watch it if you ever get the chance. You may notice some similarities with scenes in ‘Happy Feet’ if you’ve seen that. Both movies are in my Top 10!

So it was, that with emptied and refilled bellies, new friends, more memorable experiences (including Chris James returning to Aio Wira to run a 5-day Sound Healing workshop, and going to the Basement Theatre in Auckland to watch a famous NZ actress, Danielle (who did a fast at Aio Wira whilst we were there), perform in a very unusual poetry recital accompanied by a base and classical guitarist), we moved on yet again! This time to Ngunguru on the Tutukaka coast, about 35 km north east of Whangarei, to stay with our friend Genevieve in the bush!